Mushroom, corn tacos

Tacos – a wonderfully messy and nourishing indulgence, made vegan.

This is one recipe that you can assemble with leftovers from the week.m

The most important thing is to season every layer properly. First, cook the mushrooms with chopped onions and salt. I like to cook them to the point they are golden and crispy.

Then cook the spinach with chopped onion and garlic, ones cooked make a cashew sauce and mix it in the spinach.

Cook the corn in the oven. If you have it available, buy the corn raw, wash it and spread it with a mix of olive oil, garlic granules, lime juice and salt.  Bake until golden.

Make the beans prior, if you can’t you can use from a jar, but rinse them first and then season and heat them with chopped onion, and little bit of salt.

Raw Red onion in lime juice is a perfect addition of crunch and acidity to your tacos, and of course, chopped coriander.

Assemble your tacos with all the toppings and enjoy!

 

Cilantro, avocado sauce

This silky, unctuous, creamy sauce can be used in pasta dishes, as a dip, or as a salad dressing.

 

You simply have to blend all the ingredients together, adjusting the quantity of water depending on the thickness of the sauce you need.

 

 

Shortbread Scones

Scones are made for autumn days. The trick to good scones is not to overmix them.

Pre heat oven at 200ºC

Mix all dry ingredients. Once well mixed, add the oil tbsp by tbsp and mix well with a fork.

In a different bowl mix all wet ingredients and whisk well. Start adding them to the dry ingredients slowly, at the same time you mix the dough. You might not use the whole quantity of the liquid. You are looking for a humid dough, but now sticky or runny.

If it’s too wet, add 1 tbsp of oat flour. If it’s too dry continue to add more of the liquids’ mix.

Once you are happy with your dough’s consistency, put it on a clean surface.  Sprinkle some flour on the surface before adding the dough and start spreading the dough to until you have a dough with 3 cm in height.

With a glass or a round cookie cutter, cut the dough and add the circles to an oven tray, previously greased.

With a cooking brush, paint a little bit more of olive or coconut oil on top and sprinkle some of the sugar.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the dough is golden. After those 15 minutes have passed, crank the oven up to 230ºC for 3-5 more minutes, checking them the whole time so they don’t burn.

Let cool, cut in half and enjoy with butter, clotted cream, jam, ghee, yoghurt, or any other spread you fancy.

Sushi

How to Make Sushi Rolls and Perfect Sushi Rice .

 

First, start with SHORT GRAIN SUSHI RICE, but if we pay attention to the shape of the grain, we can also choose other varieties, perhaps risotto rice such as “Roma”.

Wash the rice with COLD WATER to remove any residual starch. Keep going until the water is clear.

Soak rice for 15 minutes.

Follow the rice to water ratio, which is always 1:2.

Traditional sushi has Sharizu (or vinegar seasoning) which is made with 9 parts Rice vinegar, 4 parts cane sugar, and 1 part sea salt. Cook it for 2-3 minutes in medium heat. And is added when the rice is cooked.  First mix the rice so it cools down, then add the seasoning (1 oz per every cup of rice).

Cover the rice with a damp towel. It will keep it moist and ready.

A GREAT TIP: discard the bottom layer of rice, as it is almost always dry.

HOW TO MAKE SUSHI ROLLS:

First, the nori has two sides: Smooth and Rough. The rough side will always go facing up.

Then, the rolls have three parts:

  1. Nori on the outside
  2. Rice  on the inside
  3. Fillings in the center

There are traditional rolls made with fresh fish and world-adapted options prepared with ingredients from each country to make fusions that are very interesting. How do you prepare your sushi?

  • Mexican: The use of chipotle, spicy mayonnaise, cream cheese, different chilis, jícama…
  • Italian: Prosciutto, basil, tomato, mozzarella…
  • Thai: ginger, mango, coriander, peanuts
  • Moroccan: couscous, aubergine, tahini, hummus, harissa…
  • Bahamian: Decadent Conch Sauce atop a crab stack + cream cheese roll
  • Brazilian: Salmon, cream cheese and passionfruit

Vegan Creamy Spinach Sauce

A One-pot wonder. A vibrant, fresh and exciting bowl of pasta. Perfect for these summer days.

 

Place a medium saucepan over medium heat, and add a drizzle of olive oil. Add the garlic and onion, and cook, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the spinach and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring throughout, until wilted, about 2 minutes.

Add the spinach mixture to a high-speed blender with the the avocado,  lemon  juice, extra virgin olive oil and water, and blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt to taste.

IT can be topped with pomegranate seeds, toasted almonds, toasted hazelnuts, crunchy chicpkeas, fresh coriander…

CREATIVE IDEAS TO USE THIS SAUCE:

  1. Over a bowl of rice with green beans.
  2. Mix with the pasta of your choice.
  3. It can be turned into a soup by adding vegetable stock.
  4. If you leave it thicker it can be used as a dip for your crisps or fresh veggies.
  5. Used as a salsa in a “Huevos Rancheros” type of breakfast.
  6. Poured over roasted chicken or turkey.

What other ways do you imagine you could use this sauce with?

Roasted Cauliflower Guacamole tacos

Roasted-crunchy cauliflower is mouthwatering, it is sexy and playful.

The idea behind this dish is to mix a now-classic with an old-time favourite: Mexican tacos.

Adding mashed avocado, even guacamole, crunchy chickpeas, fresh cilantro and a dollop of fresh cream or even greek yoghurt ( unsweetened, of course), to the fantastic roasted cauliflower is an epic meal that you will love to make. It is exciting to make and to eat.

You can either cut the cauliflower in steaks and then break apart, or do it as I like it, cut the florets into tiny florets, so the beautiful rub enters all of the cauliflower.

I like making a rub with turmeric, ground cumin, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and a squeeze of lime juice, you can even add a drizzle of maple syrup to the mix to make it exciting.

Roast in the oven at 200ºC for 20-30 minutes, until golden and crispy.

Asparagus Pairings

Asparagus pairings and how to create a recipe from scratch.

“Asparagus works well on the griddle, though I like it best when you have steamed it briefly first. It’s juicier that way, and you get smoky notes from the grill.” – Nigel Slater.

 

 

ASPARAGUS PAIRINGS: 

1. FRUITS:

  • Apple
  • Grapefruit
  • Lemon
  • Orange
  • Raisins
  • Raspberries
  • Strawberries

2.  VEGETABLES:

  • Fennel
  • Mushroom
  • Pea
  • Potato
  • Seaweed

3. HERBS AND SPICES:

  • Anise
  • Dill
  • Mint
  • Shiso leaves

4. NUTS AND SEEDS:

  • Almond
  • Peanut
  • Pinenuts
  • Walnuts

5. FISH AND SHELLFISH:

  • Oily Fish
  • Shellfish
  • White Fish

6.  MEAT AND DAIRY:

  • Bacon
  • Goat cheese
  • Hard Cheese
  • Prosciutto

7. OTHERS:

  • Chocolate
  • Eggs
  • Lavender honey
  • Truffle

 

References:

º The Art and Science of Foodpairing: 10,000 Flavour Matches That Will Transform the Way You Eat – Peter Coucquyt, Bernard Lahousse, Johan Langenbick
º The Flavor Thesaurus – Niki Segnit

 

Quinoa Bowl with Garlic Tahini Dressing

Nectarines are the heart and soul of this bowl .

 

To assemble the bowl, start by adding the quinoa. Add the rest of the ingredients and pour over your dressing.

DRESSING:

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour over your Quinoa Bowl and enjoy.

 

CREATIVE COOKING TIP:

Add fresh and seasonal fruits to your salads, they will uplift them. The acidity and sweetness of most fruits like nectarines, apples, and strawberries, go very well together with leafy greens and grains.

Asparagus Soup

Asparagus seem to be the celebration of the new season.

Cook the onion, leek, and garlic. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until translucent.  Add the chopped asparagus and cook for a further 3 minutes, until the asparagus begins to soften.

Add the water or broth,  chopped cilantro and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the asparagus is very tender.

Ladle the soup into a blender and blend until smooth. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender for this.

Pour the soup back into the pot and bring to simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Chocolate & Hazelnut Granola Bar

Sweet chocolate granola is even better with a crunchy twist

 

Preheat your oven at 180ºC. Blend the oats and hazelnuts until you get a flour. Add the dates, maple syrup and almond milk, and mix again.

If it’s too liquid add more oats until it resembles cookie dough.

Spread the mix on an oven tray with a silicone mat and bake for 15 minutes. Cut into bars and let cool.

Coconut and Peanut Balls

Peanuts and coconut are a thing of perfection . .

Mix all ingredients, except half the coconut shreds. If the mix is too dry add 1 more tbsp maple syrup,  if it’s too wet add more oats.

Make small balls with the mix and roll them on the remaining coconut shreds.

Refrigerate them for 30 minutes before eating them.

Vegan and Gluten-Free Strawberry Galettes

A delicious, classic French dessert made vegan and gluten-free.

1. Make the Crust: In a medium bowl or standing mixer, beat olive oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and yogurt until creamed together and slightly fluffy. Add in tapioca flour, oat flour, and baking powder and fold together. Form into a ball and set dough aside on parchment lined baking sheet.

2. Make the filling: Use the same bowl to make the filling. Gently fold all filling ingredients together until berries are well coated.

3. Roll out Dough: Preheat oven to 200C. On parchment paper, press dough ball into a rectangle using the palms of your hands/fingers. Flour your rolling pin and roll out dough into a oval/rectangle. Thickness should be about 0.5cm. Dough might crack on edges while rolling, just pinch together sides of dough when needed.

4. Assemble Galette: Transfer the parchment paper with the rolled out crust onto a baking tray.  Place astrwberries in the center of the dough, leaving a 5cm border. Fold the edges up and over the filling, overlapping slightly (pinch together dough at bottom if it cracks when folding over). Optional: Lightly brush with almond milk and sprinkle with coconut sugar.

5. Bake Galette: Bake galette at 200 C. for 25-30 minutes until golden and strawberries are slightly bubbling. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.